A day at the Miami Open
Admittedly, I don’t go out much. So I can easily cause a lot of stress for my friends and self with my lack of skill with Ticketmaster, parking, and what purse or bag I’ll be allowed to take in. The Miami Open was no exception.
A lovely friend of ours volunteers each year at this tournament. She generously shared these complementary tickets that she had. Since she gave the tickets to me I did my best to learn about parking ahead of time since I’ve never been to the Hard Rock Stadium.
The information on the Miami Open web page and app highly recommended purchasing parking tickets ahead of time. They even offered a $5 discount for doing so. Well that was really an advertisement because when I clicked to purchase they claimed that offer was no longer valid and $40 was the charge. Then they pushed for an insurance fee ticket in case something goes wrong so one can request a refund. So much for me feeling secure about my parking ticket purchase. All I envisioned is showing up with a lot full and being denied a space, so I opted to purchase the additional three dollar and something fee. Then the screen gave me instant praise for doing so. Meanwhile, the parking tickets never showed up in my email or on my Ticketmaster account.
So, when we pulled in to park, I jumped out to see if I could talk to a Ticketmaster representative to help me find where the tickets went since the charge went through on my credit card, but I couldn’t find them in my Ticketmaster account, Miami Open App, or email. Instead, I was told that no one was available and to go across the street to park and pay $40 again. The guy was pretty sympathetic and acknowledge that the web page and app bullies people into buying tickets ahead meanwhile, there’s no need to. He assured me that I could dispute the first parking charge through my credit card and to just pay again. Great, more work for me to do later to keep money in my wallet. This is supposed to be my day off and fun. Thankfully, my friend was very calm and didn’t get upset over it.
Moving onto more highway robbery are the concession stands. My friend pointed out that $27 for a kabob pita was actually pretty good compared to the $25 she paid last year for a pathetic veggie burger. Silly me got thirsty for lemonade. There went another $15.
Meanwhile one can alleviate the guilt of all the take out cups and plates for these snacks when they go to the trash can by choosing to which bin to dispose it in. What a bunch of one world green religious manipulation that’s nothing but lies. None of it is recycled. They just trash it all and send it to the new Florida hills and mountains built from garbage.
More psychological lies and signs remind users on the way out of the restroom that they still want us to social distance, wear masks, and flip out if you have any sign of a cough or cold virus. More than six years have past since the 2020 Covid panic. All the dissenting who were accused of conspiracy have since been proven right, yet these signs are still posted? Really?
Perhaps I’m coming across as not much fun as I point out how ludicrious and outrageous the costs are but it baffles me as to how stupid people have become. Did we learn anything from the collapse of Rome or appreciate what the Poet Juvenal suggested that they “give bread and circuses “to appease and distract the populace from that which really mattered? What’s different now that makes it even worse is they’ve convinced us it’s worth paying too much for on top!
They’ve also persuaded us that cash is dirty and inconvenient. Choose the ease of the plastic credit card instead. Better yet, pay it through your phone and soon the chip in your body.
Then sit idle and watch others get the exercise that everyone else desperately needs. Well, tennis tournaments tend to attract a crowd that make it to the gym several times a week more so than other professional sports, but I still saw a handful of overweight individuals moving really slowly while others bustled on by.
Just in case you think I’m only here to criticize, I had a great time with my friend and walked away inspired that one young at heart ball boy didn’t let his age sequester him to a volunteer desk job at the tournament.
I also enjoyed watching live right behind a dad and coach as their champion lost graciously in the 3rd set.
The Women’s finals are tonight with the Men’s tomorrow. But those true tennis players and fans know that going earlier in the week when we did is the secret to enjoying lots of great tennis up close and personal.
Thanks again to my friend and her husband who volunteer and gave us the tickets. Thanks to my other friend who she and her husband took care of my new rescue puppy while we were gone for the day. And thanks to my friend who drove and stayed calm with the paid in advance parking debacle.
Links to related topics mentioned:
https://greenpacks.org/do-trash-companies-really-recycle
https://nypost.com/2023/02/27/10-myths-told-by-covid-experts-now-debunked